View nearly 200 of the weirdest, wildest, and most fascinating skulls from our research collection.

We’ve looked into our research collections and brought out some of our coolest skulls. Rarely on display, the skulls featured are research specimens of animals from around the world—mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians, ranging from the big and spectacular (a rhinoceros, a big-horned sheep, a giraffe) to the miniature (California’s own tiny Western Black-headed Snake).

Compare the skulls of all 57 species of San Diego County’s snakes and lizards. Watch scavenger beetles devour the flesh off a real animal skeleton, leaving it clean for scientists to study. Create your own skull art on the Skulls chalkboard, or write a question about a skull for Museum scientists to answer. Learn about the different bones in skulls, and see how they're different from each other.

Skulls features the best of what theNAT has to offer—real specimens, real science, and nature’s diversity in all its stunning variety.

See the latest KPBS video: Behind the Scenes at theNAT to watch the real specimens being cleaned by flesh-eating beetles.